MasterChef: The Professionals (UK) - General Discussion

[TVbitch]

Episodes 4-6:

Spoiler

 

Jeez I'm a softy. As soon as Ross' lip started quivering when Marcus praised his dish in episode 4, I was weeping right along with him. Marcus and especially Monica were so kind with him. Ahhh. Which makes it gutting that he was the only one who didn't make it through to the semi-finals in the critic's round. He must be devastated. 

I like Grace Dent, but I never need to hear her say "in eh vih tiv" again. Find some new words lady! : D And to be fair, it is MUCH easier for a chef like Santosh who is bringing food and flavors from Napal to be innovative than it is for Alex or Ross who do not have a unique cultural background like that. That said, Santosh nailed it and greatly improved his plating, so he deserves his spot.

For a moment I thought they would choose Jono over Alex, so I'm glad they took both. ...still gutted for Ross though. 

 

 

Edited November 23, 2020 by TVbitch

[lambertman]

Echoing my enjoyment of having one of Monica/Marcus in the other room during the skills tests and free to talk.  I do miss having a third critic, but that's life right now.

[rhys]

Hmmmm. What the heck was that 3/4 thing? Illness? Cheating? I hope we viewers find out. Odd indeed.

[akr]

Very odd!

Usually if someone gets sick partway through, they say so rather than edit them out, right? Perhaps a quarantine violation (wouldn't want anyone participating who'd put others & the production at risk), ineligibility, or some sort of off show misbehavior would be other possibilities.

Anyway, no real answers here, but an article about it:

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8983729/Mystery-MasterChef-Professionals-edits-one-four-contestants.html

Perhaps whoever it was came second or third. It felt like they'd had to pretend there was a question between them, asked the original #4 to record a "maybe I'm still in it" bit even though it was obvious he wasn't, & refilmed the part where they announce who's staying.

Edited November 25, 2020 by akr

[Athena]

There is some interesting speculation on this Reddit thread that it was someone who may have breached their work clauses such as an NDA or that they did so poorly that they and/or their work has asked them to be removed from the show completely. It must have been serious enough for the BBC to do so.

Ep 7 overall:

Spoiler

Also what a ridiculous episode. They had a lot of weaker chefs with Scott and I am assuming mystery chef. Guillaume was only mediocre too. I felt bad for the other contestants who didn't go through in earlier stages as they would have done better over these ones in Ep 7. 

Scott was second hand embarrassment through the whole ep. How can a pastry chef not know how to mix pancakes? I knew when he took the lamb rump out of the sous vide that it would not be done in time. It was sweet of Marcus to cheer him up at the end but none of his dishes worked at all.

 

[Spunkygal]

Yes, Harrison and a few other eliminated chefs who performed well just had an unlucky draw on who they were competing against. As for the missing mystery chef, I assumed that he/she really tanked it and asked to not be shown. 

[rhys]

I hope we find out what happened to the missing mystery chef. I think we will, but I would like to know soon so I don't forget that it's this season.

[Sarnia]

Ep 7 & 8 : I'm somewhat unimpressed with this week's contestants. Unless they step up their game I don't feel they match some previous contestants. I actually hope

Spoiler

Aaron is going to be more focused/efficient because Indian twist on classic dishes could be interesting. I thought he would be called by Marcus for the fat on his lamb in the signature round. Maybe it tasted better than it looked but the big lumps of fat did not look really appealing.

I like to see Marcus loosening up season after season. I laughed hard when Greg expressed his love of kidneys on toast for breakfast and Marcus was "what's wrong with corn flakes?" (yes Marcus, my thoughts exactly).

Edited November 27, 2020 by Sarnia

[Sarnia]

Ep 9 : well they did up their game 🙂 Strong critics round (and hello Jay Rayner!). And I was right to hope about

Spoiler

Aaron, his lobster dish looked amazing.

 

[Spunkygal]

Episode 9: Yay! Jay is back to critique!

Spoiler

In the invention test, I was really hoping someone would do a really creative dessert. Citrusy desserts are my favorite. You can keep your chocolate, give me citrus! Wow, Aaron really has stepped up his game and the critics were raving about his dishes. For Monica to say that his cabbage starter was one of the best she has eaten is impressive. I’m so curious about the sauce. I’ll need to re-watch to note what it was called, but did they say it was potato based? And good for Luke—a brand new dad with a pastry chef wife. He did save his neck by cooking the wagyu perfectly after forgetting to start the sous vide. The accompanying sauce looked amazing with the condiment from Yorkshire that he added to it. I was underwhelmed by the chefs in episodes 7 and 8 but these four who made it through to episode 9 surprisingly performed well to quite well. 

Jay never fails to amuse me and (paraphrasing here) “if booze soaked cherries don’t get you going, we’re never going to be friends” was great. 

 

[couchcelery]

Finally caught up with all the episodes. (Glad to know this forum is still going: I keep forgetting about the name change and refer to it as TWOP... 😅) It took me a while to get used to this condensed version but I guess in these circumstances we should be happy we're getting the show at all. LOVE the camaraderie of the three judges - Marcus is much more comfortable now - and there hasn't been disaster contestants so far. 

Very curious about the mystery missing chef. The theories on social media range from probable to hilarious, I hope it's nothing tragic.

Miss having a third critic, too. My favorite trio is Grace Dent, Jay Rayner, and William Sitwell, especially when they disagree: the bickering and banter is comedy gold.

What are the rules re: spoilers? I thought people came here after watching already aired episodes. Just in case:

Spoiler

Sooo intrigued by Aaron's hispi cabbage dish. I mean, it's hispi cabbage! How much can you elevate it? Now he's become one of the chefs whose food I really want to try along with last season's winner Stu, rematch winner Sven, and Season 10 Matt (RIP).

I wonder how they're going to deal with the restaurant segment. One of the highlights of this competition was being able to see the chefs tackle a Michelin environment - especially when they go overseas - and I'd think that would've been a great incentive for them as well, but if that has been omitted... can't wait to find out.

[Athena]

On 11/27/2020 at 3:47 PM, Spunkygal said:

Episode 9: Yay! Jay is back to critique!

  Hide contents

In the invention test, I was really hoping someone would do a really creative dessert. Citrusy desserts are my favorite. You can keep your chocolate, give me citrus! Wow, Aaron really has stepped up his game and the critics were raving about his dishes. For Monica to say that his cabbage starter was one of the best she has eaten is impressive. I’m so curious about the sauce. I’ll need to re-watch to note what it was called, but did they say it was potato based?

 

 

Spoiler

Bombay aloo aka Bombay potatoes. I do not know how he did that. It sounded like it was completely vegetarian too and knocked everyone's socks off. I wanted it so bad as well. He's definitely one of my favs.

 

20 hours ago, couchcelery said:

Finally caught up with all the episodes. (Glad to know this forum is still going: I keep forgetting about the name change and refer to it as TWOP... 😅) It took me a while to get used to this condensed version but I guess in these circumstances we should be happy we're getting the show at all. LOVE the camaraderie of the three judges - Marcus is much more comfortable now - and there hasn't been disaster contestants so far. 

Very curious about the mystery missing chef. The theories on social media range from probable to hilarious, I hope it's nothing tragic.

Miss having a third critic, too. My favorite trio is Grace Dent, Jay Rayner, and William Sitwell, especially when they disagree: the bickering and banter is comedy gold.

What are the rules re: spoilers? I thought people came here after watching already aired episodes. Just in case:

  Reveal spoiler

Sooo intrigued by Aaron's hispi cabbage dish. I mean, it's hispi cabbage! How much can you elevate it? Now he's become one of the chefs whose food I really want to try along with last season's winner Stu, rematch winner Sven, and Season 10 Matt (RIP).

I wonder how they're going to deal with the restaurant segment. One of the highlights of this competition was being able to see the chefs tackle a Michelin environment - especially when they go overseas - and I'd think that would've been a great incentive for them as well, but if that has been omitted... can't wait to find out.

On spoilers: Since we've gone down to single thread, most of the posters have opted for spoilers to allow for others to catch up as most of us binge the show.  While not completely necessary, we can set our own rules as there are only a few of us and want to be considerate.

The show also use to do a lot of catering challenges so I'm wondering how TPTB will have done that. I guess smaller parties. They did an outdoor patio challenge last year so I wonder if they will do another outdoor challenge  especially since they filmed this later in summer.

[TVbitch]

Episodes 7-9

Also curious about the missing chef?! Why be so secretive?! It seemed to me in epi 7 they put someone through (the French guy) who really didn't deserve it. I would have preferred if they just put the one through and said, "because a contestant dropped out, the judges will be putting through someone from a previous round that they felt was most deserving."  And there were a couple that were way more deserving than Frenchie!

I wonder if some of the ones who do quite badly are worried it will actually hinder their careers outside of the show. 

I love cabbage and that dish would be right up my alley! Jay Raynor cracks me up too. On Luke's wagu beef dish, the female judge pointed out that it wasn't anything new and Jay says .. "perhaps, but I am glad it's coming my way!" 

[Spunkygal]

Episode 10:

Spoiler

Carla’s interesting and I hope she stays for a while to see what she can do. Bart has such a varied background which should serve him well. A pretty good episode. Both skills challenges looked yummy, especially those tempura mussels!

I’m probably in the minority, but I like my bacon very well done. When both Marcus and Monica mentioned how over-cooked Otis’s bacon was in the skills challenge, I thought, ok, pass it to me then. 

 

[rhys]

What was the spice on Carla's meringue?

[Sarnia]

Yes, strong contestants in Ep10, and great skills tests! Very excited about the contestants who went through, they seem really creative and interesting.

[Spunkygal]

9 hours ago, rhys said:

What was the spice on Carla's meringue?

Was it pink peppercorns or am I getting her meringues confused with some meringues on Sugar Rush Christmas that I watched last night?

ETA: just watched her description again. It was meringues with pink peppercorn with a galangal cream. According to wiki, galangal is in the ginger family.

Edited December 3, 2020 by Spunkygal

[Athena]

9 hours ago, rhys said:

What was the spice on Carla's meringue?

 

2 hours ago, Spunkygal said:

Was it pink peppercorns or am I getting her meringues confused with some meringues on Sugar Rush Christmas that I watched last night?

Yes, it was pink peppercorn. I was intrigued by the galanga syrup and the use of rhubarb.

[rhys]

Nuts. I was at a Penzeys just yesterday and could have picked up the galangal but didn't!

[Spunkygal]

1 hour ago, rhys said:

Nuts. I was at a Penzeys just yesterday and could have picked up the galangal but didn't!

How would you have used it? In a dessert?

Episode 11:

Spoiler

It seems as though the “weaker” chefs have appeared in the last couple of episodes. No surprise on who goes through from this one. Dalila was just a nervous, unconfident chef. She made me wince. Harry was cute but not exciting. They all four left something off their plates! I don’t think I’ve ever seen that in all these seasons! To be only 21, Jamaar was fairly impressive and stayed calm. Paul has lots of experience but he’ll have to rein back trying to show off his techniques. In the beginning I was not that crazy about Monica and Marcus taking turns watching the skills test in a back room but I’m really enjoying that new feature now. 

 

[rhys]

3 hours ago, Spunkygal said:

How would you have used it? In a dessert?

Episode 11:

  Reveal spoiler

It seems as though the “weaker” chefs have appeared in the last couple of episodes. No surprise on who goes through from this one. Dalila was just a nervous, unconfident chef. She made me wince. Harry was cute but not exciting. They all four left something off their plates! I don’t think I’ve ever seen that in all these seasons! To be only 21, Jamaar was fairly impressive and stayed calm. Paul has lots of experience but he’ll have to rein back trying to show off his techniques. In the beginning I was not that crazy about Monica and Marcus taking turns watching the skills test in a back room but I’m really enjoying that new feature now. 

 

I don't know lol! But the way they were gushing about it; I was intrigued.

[Sarnia]

Ep 12. The outcome was pretty clear from the comments during the critic round. Jay Rayner and Grace Dent are such a fun duo! I'm happy for

Spoiler

Bart and Jamaar (but that ice cream melting on the napkin was not very appealing - I hope it's only the case for the plate they used for filming, which probably had to sit out a bit too long).

It should be a pretty strong semi-final round. Very excited. But from the preview it seems

Spoiler

there is no outside challenge.

 (not sure if the previews are considered spoilers).

Edited December 4, 2020 by Sarnia

[couchcelery]

Ep 10 -12

Spoiler

Nooooo.... I was so intrigued by Carla and her dishes and kept on wondering what she would do next. Also impressed at her gumption to take part in the highest level of competition in their field, at that age, with no classical training. It's inspiring. Her personality was so much fun, too.

Usually at this stage I have my favorites, usually based on their food + personalities, but I don't have one yet. Last season was full of very interesting chefs so I guess this season seems a bit subdued in comparison. 

I've never had salsify or celeriac before - Asian in Asia here - but it shows up a lot on Brit TV. I don't recall seeing them a lot on American shows, either. Are they popular European produce or just British, I wonder.

[TVbitch]

Episodes 10-12

Monica's skills test in 10: Okay when Marcus says, "Wow that is a lot of butter" then that IS A LOT of butter, cuz dude puts an entire stick in for pretty much anything. : D

Damn, Bart's workspace is more tidy and organized than my silverware drawer. Love to watch him cook. ... ... don't know if I am buying that he is only 33 though. : D 

I can't believe we are at finals week already. : (

[Athena]

9 hours ago, couchcelery said:

I've never had salsify or celeriac before - Asian in Asia here - but it shows up a lot on Brit TV. I don't recall seeing them a lot on American shows, either. Are they popular European produce or just British, I wonder.

Salsify is similar or is sometimes another name for burdock. Burdock is much more popular in Asia and they have a similar taste. I think it's actually less popular than this show makes it out to be.

Celeriac is more common in Europe and Britain. I don't see it that much in North America either.

[akr]

On 12/5/2020 at 5:48 AM, TVbitch said:

I can't believe we are at finals week already. : (

Not quite! Next week is semifinals, then finals the next week. 

I don't think I've ever seen salsify (I'm in the US), but celery root is around and I'll sometimes buy it (to roast or mash (try with cream cheese & everything bagel seasoning! I think I got that from Blue Apron), although you can also do a celery root salad). I didn't encounter it until I was at least 30, though, and probably only started using it semi-regularly in the last 10 years. Still, it feels like it's always been there, and I just didn't know how to use it and avoided it because I don't much like celery. Anyone who's willing to put a parsnip on a plate should give it a go - it deserves to be right up there with carrots (actually, higher) as something starchy that's not a potato or sweet potato. 

It shows up a lot on Masterchef Australia, too. Do chefs just get bored with potatoes sometimes, or think they're not special enough for competition? 

Edited December 7, 2020 by akr
typo

[couchcelery]

On 12/5/2020 at 11:25 PM, Athena said:

Salsify is similar or is sometimes another name for burdock. Burdock is much more popular in Asia and they have a similar taste. I think it's actually less popular than this show makes it out to be.

Oooh, good to know. Deep fried burdock before, but now I wonder how it'll be if done in salsify crisp style.

On 12/6/2020 at 1:55 AM, akr said:

It shows up a lot on Masterchef Australia, too. Do chefs just get bored with potatoes sometimes, or think they're not special enough for competition? 

Quite likely. Although potatoes are delish and difficult to mess up. I find it funny how Grace Dent always gets excited when there are potatoes on the dish. LOL

[rhys]

I am going to miss the skills test. Those are my favorite. I hate seeing their nervousness but I enjoy seeing what M&M dream up & how they handle the foods, etc.

[TVbitch]

WOW, the first episode of the semi-final was amazing. I nearly wept at one of the dishes. 

The right ones went through. Thank goodness we only lost two. This is going to get painful. 

It always amuses me when the not-so-humbe chefs talk about how they made some "tiny mistakes" but think they did enough to go through, when they actually made rather significant mistakes and were clearly a step below the others. I loved that they showed us a glimpse of the waiting room!

Spoiler

So glad, Dave redeemed himself. You can see how much it means to him. And Bart really let himself show emotion this episode. They are my favorites. Passionate yet humble, even though they are both very accomplished.

 

[Spunkygal]

@TVbitch, 

Spoiler

I so agree and would add Luke as among my favorites. His take on fish and chips was lovely. Happy for Philli that she was able to make it through, though I think she has some “cookery maturing” ahead of her. It was very clever to have the five in the invention challenge prepare a take-away box. 
 

This is one of the very few shows that has not disappointed me this year. Noel and Matt ruined GBBO, The Amazing Race has been a big, steaming pile, and I wasn’t that impressed with The Crown. But this show has been the wind beneath my wings this year.

 

[TVbitch]

Spoiler

I forgot about Luke, another good guy and great dish.

@Spunkygal, Have you checked out the BBC's "Race Across the World". Much more entertaining and real than Amazing Race!

[Spunkygal]

12 minutes ago, TVbitch said:

  Reveal spoiler

I forgot about Luke, another good guy and great dish.

@Spunkygal, Have you checked out the BBC's "Race Across the World". Much more entertaining and real than Amazing Race!

I have not heard of it but will definitely check it out. You’ve never steered me wrong on a TV program yet! 

[Spunkygal]

Episode 14:

Spoiler

Way to go, Philli! I am so happy for her and it was cute when she did the little skip out the door at Monica’s urging. Her cauliflower dish looked delicious and she is so eager to grow. I very much enjoyed Aktar and his two dishes were thoughtfully prepared and had me licking my chops. I thought Luke would perform well with Aktar’s inspiration dishes in mind, but poor guy must have been so nervous! He deveined the wrong side of the prawns! Oh no! I didn’t even know that was possible. It was clear that Bart was not comfortable with what he presented to Aktar but he sure crushed it in the next round. Alex also recovered from a sub-par attempt to kill it to get through to the finals week. His take on a peach melba was beautiful and had candy floss! I wonder if Monica put him through because he made a tasty cocktail? J/K!!  I did wonder what Santosh would have made for Aktar. He really knows his spices. 

 

[TVbitch]

Spoiler

 

I was a bit bummed no one blew the guest chef away, but how incredibly tough to have to "be inspired" right on the spot and come up with two dishes! Great chefs take a lot of time to develop and refine one dish, let alone two ~as evidenced in their second round, practiced dishes. 

I thought Philli would be the one to go this round. And to be honest, I wish it would have been her instead of Luke, just cuz Luke is such a lovable guy. A smiley enthusiatic bloke who was so excited to be there.

I don't know how I feel about those "potato 15 ways" kind of dishes. My first reaction is to find it pretentious and overwrought. But then, I've never actually eaten a dish like that and it might blow my socks off. I would actually be afraid to eat a dish like that, cuz if it was amazing then I would be disappointed every time I had to eat my potato just one way.  : D 

 

 

[Athena]

On 12/10/2020 at 9:33 AM, TVbitch said:

It always amuses me when the not-so-humbe chefs talk about how they made some "tiny mistakes" but think they did enough to go through, when they actually made rather significant mistakes and were clearly a step below the others. I loved that they showed us a glimpse of the waiting room!

 

Spoiler

Aaron. Yeah I liked him in the heats but he was so overconfident with both his dishes ("what sets me apart is my spices"). I felt sorry for him when he left because he seemed deflated but he really wasn't as good as the others.

 

[Spunkygal]

Episode 15: 

Spoiler

Really enjoyed Andrew Wong. He had an interesting story about his family, their restaurants and how he lived in China for a year to learn more and evolve. He had an engaging personality too. Congrats to Santosh and I was not surprised he did so well. He does have an interesting and original spin on food. Whew, so glad Dave made it through! I like him so much. Jono’s mushroom tiramisu was, um, interesting. It’s at the point that it’s hard to say bye to any of them. I can’t guess who the final three will be.

 

[TVbitch]

Spoiler

The right one definitely went home. I was also really worried for Dave cuz I really like him. I actually feel Dave deserved the win over Santosh on the Andrew Wong challenge. Santosh is amazing, for sure, but he made two dishes that he has made before and that are Napalese dishes that he tweaked to meet the challenge. Dave had never even made dim sum before, and he made up his two dishes on the spot. I thought the challenge was meant to be more of an "invention" test where you make up dishes in the moment, to show your creativity.  

I think I might like how they are doing the semi-finals this year even more than when the chef's go out to a restaurant to cook. I enjoy watching the guest chef's work and then we get to see two rounds of two-dishes of the contestants cooking. That's a delicious amount of cookery! Though I am sure it is really exciting for the contestants to get to go into famous restaurants and cook, so I would not want to take that away from them. 

[babs1226]

On 12/4/2020 at 11:58 PM, couchcelery said:

I've never had salsify or celeriac before - Asian in Asia here - but it shows up a lot on Brit TV. I don't recall seeing them a lot on American shows, either. Are they popular European produce or just British, I wonder.

I've seen them on Australian and British cooking shows, but I've never seen them here in the US.

 

[Sarnia]

On 12/13/2020 at 8:44 PM, TVbitch said:

  Hide contents

 

I think I might like how they are doing the semi-finals this year even more than when the chef's go out to a restaurant to cook. I enjoy watching the guest chef's work and then we get to see two rounds of two-dishes of the contestants cooking. That's a delicious amount of cookery! Though I am sure it is really exciting for the contestants to get to go into famous restaurants and cook, so I would not want to take that away from them. 

I agree. As a viewer I'm not really excited by service challenges in a different restaurant. I'm happy to see the chefs do their own thing, not recreate someone else's dishes. I think the show has made a very good job of dealing with the sanitary restrictions. So far it's a very enjoyable season (and the chefs are all pretty good, so that helps).

[couchcelery]

On 12/14/2020 at 10:21 PM, babs1226 said:

I've seen them on Australian and British cooking shows, but I've never seen them here in the US.

 

Confirmation from an American! IIRC, American shows seem to have a love affair with scallops. 😁

Up to Ep. 16

Spoiler

Sooo impressed with the caliber of this year's finalists. Last year's had more personality, but the standard of this season is truly amazing. 

Sorry to see Dave go, especially after getting through that grueling dimsum round. I've been making dumplings my entire life yet still struggle with the wrappers and tend to get premade ones or roll out the dough and punch out circles with an upside down glass. Kudos to him. It was just amazing.

Santosh has such an interesting POV. There are so many Asian-European fusion style dishes out there but he has a more high-end classic flair and Nepalese cuisine hasn't had as much exposure as other Asian countries so I'm very intrigued. (Philli's style of fusion is more familiar in comparison.) 

I'm rooting for Bart, because I've wanted to try everything he has put up so far + his personality is so endearing. Almost feels like his employers haven't complimented him enough as he is always so pleased and excited that the judges like his food. 

Excited for Chef's Table! It looks a bit pared down, but I love seeing Michelin chefs giving positive and constructive criticism. 

 

[Spunkygal]

Episode 16:

Spoiler

No surprise that Philli and Bart went through. Frankly, I would have enjoyed all three of the bouillabaisse entries and when Dave’s was too salty, I knew he probably wouldn’t survive the next cook off. The competition is too fierce. I don’t know that I’ve ever eaten rabbit but would try it especially with a mustard sauce. I doubt I would try the offal but that’s because I can go only so far in my eating adventures. In the cook off, the minute I saw a close up of Dave’s chocolate glaze, I knew that was it for him. And he didn’t think through the use of the liquid nitrogen. It was rather gimmicky. When it came down to Santosh vs, Jono, I was rather happy it was Santosh. I adore mango and should have been in Gregg’s place to sample it! Sometimes Jono is too creative for me. I know his beef marrow brûlée dessert in a previous episode garnered praise but that sticky toffee pudding sounded yucky to me. Beef fat toffee sauce and caviar ice cream? That would keep gastroenterologists all over the UK busy for weeks. I think the final two will be Bart and Alex. I don’t want this season to end soon. It has been a delight and I’m thrilled that TPTB made it possible, that Marcus, Monica and Gregg agreed to do it and that these wonderful chefs had the opportunity to shine. 

 

[Spunkygal]

Episode 17:

Spoiler

Aw, it just wasn’t Philli’s day. Pressed for time, too much to do, too many elements. But good on her for her growth so far and I’m sure she can elevate her food even more. What a darling girl with a tremendous attitude.

This episode more than any I’ve ever watched made me melty inside. That elimination round where they cooked with a salute to someone was brilliant. I was a bit surprised that Bart did not do so well at chefs table but he crushed it with his fish dish with grandpa in mind. Fairy wands DO work! 

Alex and his blackberry/duck dish with grandpa in mind and the cute little blackberry plant! He also crushed it and got a bit weepy.

Oh wow, Santosh. This guy may actually walk away with everything. Early on, I wondered if he and his mantra of spices would hold up but they have and I want to try everything he makes. Seriously, when he was talking about digging ditches at 12 and mama bringing him lunch, if you didn’t have a pitty-patter of your heart, then you need help. And his food seems to be in another stratosphere. Well done, young man! 

Not gonna lie. I knew she was doomed when Philli said she was putting a spin on Heston Blumenthal’s sounds of the sea dish. Not original, especially when they featured Chef Heston’s dish on a previous season at his restaurant! 

I will not watch episode 18 tonight. Gonna savor this episode with probably too much Chardonnay tonight and a realization  that this wonderful season which was produced in a $h!tty year was successful in giving us loyal followers great satisfaction. IMO, best show on TV or whatever format you use! It works a treat.

 

[babs1226]

I am sad that this season was so short, but very glad that they did the show.  The three finalists are so talented that I was fine with any of them winning.  It's all good.

[TVbitch]

WOW. This will forever and always be my favorite cookery show. The boys brought me to tears this week with their stories of mom's and grandpa's. 

Spoiler

I had been rooting for Bart the whole competition, but during the semi-final I found myself rooting for Alex and was thrilled when he won. He worked his way up, and his creations were his own. His final meal was genius, and he truly deserved it. When Marcus had to pause before he could even speak after tasting his main, I knew he had it! What a moment! 

So is it boo ya base, boo ee ah base, or boo ee yah base, cuz between the chefs, the narrator and the judges, I heard all three!

What a delightful season! Happy holidays to you all and hope to see you for the next MC UK!  

[Spunkygal]

Sad this season is over, but thrilled they pulled it off beautifully with an amazing finale:

Spoiler

What charming chefs! Alex’s very handsome dad taking him for a driving lesson and teasing Alex about the lesson; Alex with his little plastic kitchen as a child and then his chef’s jacket—all so touching. Bart proudly catching his first eel to show mum; with his beautiful family, always with that lovely smile on his face! Santosh with his moving story of his humble upbringing; using his food as a tribute to Nepal—so focused and true to himself. There wasn’t a dud in the group. 

After all 3 had presented, I felt it came down to Bart and Alex. Bart’s dessert with the porcini biscuit sounded amazing!  But Marcus was speechless at Alex’s trout dish and he didn’t rave about all 3 of Bart’s dishes to the extent that he did Alex’s dishes. So well done, young man! 

I also have to say that I thoroughly enjoy Gregg as host. He makes valid comments about the food and is not too intrusive as he wanders around the kitchen as the chefs are cooking. I know a few other cookery/baking show hosts who could learn a thing from Gregg.

So as this season comes to a satisfying and delightful conclusion, I am thrilled to see on social media that they are already asking for submissions to tryout for the next season! Sigh....I cannot wait!

Happy holidays, fellow MC fans. Stay well and take care of yourselves. P.S. I am never trying lamb’s brain!

 

Edited December 20, 2020 by Spunkygal

[Athena]

We're behind on our watch of Finals week. I usually savour the finale close to Christmas Day (a couple times, I've watched it on Christmas day) because I never like the end of this season.

Episode 16:

Spoiler

Another great ep for Bart, Philli, Alex and Santosh. I really really liked Dave but he didn't have the experience or the innovation the others had.

I am not sad about Jono going. As I mentioned earlier, I could not warm to his gimmicks. He sorta sealed the deal by not going with the brief by not making a mustard sauce. I've had rabbit a couple of times and even one of the best dining experiences involved rabbit done in a French style. Jono's excuse that rabbit is a "delicate meat" rang false. Yes, it is lean and gamey, but it goes really well with rich and strong sauces like mustard. Also, he said he stewed it as well so it can't be that delicate for him either.

Be back after I watch ep 17 and ep 18.

[rhys]

That was so fun. I appreciate all the adaptations that were made due to covid. Bravo/Brava to all involved. Way to go, Alex. I thought Bart was going to be the winner. I hope we see him and Santosh on future episodes.

[TVbitch]

Just saw something called "Masterchef The Professionals A Festive Knockout" come through! Haven't watchedit yet, but it says Episode 1, so hopefully there will me more! 

[Athena]

2 hours ago, TVbitch said:

Just saw something called "Masterchef The Professionals A Festive Knockout" come through! Haven't watchedit yet, but it says Episode 1, so hopefully there will me more! 

There will be two episodes and tonight (Wednesday) is the second one.

[Spunkygal]

13 hours ago, TVbitch said:

Just saw something called "Masterchef The Professionals A Festive Knockout" come through! Haven't watchedit yet, but it says Episode 1, so hopefully there will me more! 

Well that was delightful! Marcus and Monica were particularly cute and light hearted. I remember all four of the returning chefs. Unfortunately I was spoiled regarding the winner when I was searching for the video.

Spoiler

The sandwich that Danny prepared in the skills test did look way too dry. It should have had a generous smothering of bechamel over the top. I laughed when Marcus told him later not to open a sandwich shop! Also laughed when one of the chefs was making a slaw with sprouts and Gregg said that his mum always started boiling the Christmas veg right after his birthday in October! Everything in the signature round looked yummy. I’m so glad they all did well, and good on Louisa to win. She’s about to turn 25 and has a great future. 

I also saw that this was labeled episode 1 on my viewing source, but they toasted the winner with champagne and said this was a great way to end the year, and at the end, the voiceover guy with the sexy voice didn’t say anything about the next episode. So I’ll just check back and see if there is an episode 2. I hope there is.